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tv   CBS 5 Eyewitness News at 6PM  CBS  August 6, 2012 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT

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magazine includes a magazine that can be detached, either with a finger or by use of a tool, like a bullet. >> it changed that the bullet but in a weapon is in fact part of the ban. and so, therefore. you cannot in fact possess that particular kind of weapon unless you make certain modification so that the dangers features are not part. >> the bill calls on the attorney general to amend the state's regulations and bring them back into conformity with a walk. >> everyone sense that there was winking going on in the state of california. and a bullet but was ok. >> after three months of no comment, the attorney general now says " i applaud the legislature's interest in addressing this problem ". and support efforts to restore the lost original intent. it is a call to war for california's gun rights lobby. >> these are real constitutional problems.
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>> he is president of the california guns foundation. >> the quarter million people in the past years that have bought these, could now be felons. that is a real issue. >> gun owners in california would have to register and modify their a a r rifles. beginning next july gun stores in california would no longer be able to sell bullet but in guns. >> it will take very serious reconsideration to be able to comply. >> they promised to lobby hard against the bill but senator leland yee says that he is ready for battle. >> i think that in the capital, people now realize that we have to do something about these assault weapons. and if there is any leakage in this particular band, we need to plug that particular hole. >> several lawmakers have signed on as co-authors of the bill including senate president pro tem darrell steinberg. but support so far has not been bipartisan.
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meantime, they say that if the bill becomes law, the state should be ready for a civil rights lawsuit. >> after a monthlong recess the state legislature is back in session today with only four weeks left, they have a very big issue to resolve and of course the billions of taxpayer dollars that are at stake. grace lee is at the capitol with how the legislature plans to reform pensions. it is a big one. >> it absolutely is, is not the most sexy issue because it is so complicated but it is hugely important because it affects so many californians. at least 1 million directly. and while no one has seen the legislature's plan publicly, the senate president says he will reach a deal with the governor and he will get a pension reform passed before they leave and a month. >> we have a number of priorities but i think the first on a list as pension reform. we have talked a lot about it, let's sit down. >> he promises a plan but would only hints at how the
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legislature will manage the unwieldy public pension fund. >> i think over the next week or two you will see that we will save billions of dollars over the course of the next 30 years by reducing formulas for new workers and changing some of the rules that have allowed for some abuse. and at the same time, to make sure that we do not take everyone down to the bottom here. >> thisenator darrell steinberg says that is not true, in fact he says that they're very close to an agreement. >> what happened in the middle of july is that we just needed more time to work through the details. we were really not that far apart from the governor, in my view. >> the governor unveiled his plan 10 months ago, he wants to increase the retirement age for new state employes to 67, however one contribute 50
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percent of the cost of their attention and put a cap on retirement benefits. it is these types of plan that have some unions on edge. >> does this make you nervous? >> yes it was because we have not seen the language. >> the california school employees association worries that pension reform will not translate to accommodate all the different types of public employees. >> formulas are different. a firefighter has a different formula than a police officer in their different for the teachers. collective bargaining is the law of the land, is the way we reform pensions in the past and we think that is how to be done in the future. >> while pension reform is the biggest issue, the legislature still needs to vote on a couple hundred bill so that a lot of work ahead of them in the next month and a reconvene on thursday. >> the clock is ticking. thank you. the mayor of oakland has a bone to pick with a major newspaper. the new york times quoted her saying that the oakland police department set her up to look at during the occupied protests.
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now she says that was taken out of context. mark stare is here with what officers have to say about that. >> well, the mayor has certainly taken a lot of criticism over her handling of the occupied movement and not until this weekend the new york times magazine was there any discussion of an outright set up. when police moved in on occupied protesters on october 75th of last year, the oakland mayor was in washington d.c., the timing led the mayor to make this comment to the new york times " the theory among some of my left friends, and among some members of my family, was that i was set up ". >> the near times article does not sound like that. >> during an event at the observatory, she said the comments have been taken out of context. >> he asked me why did people think i was set up and i answered and that is what the " is, so i'm not happy with that article.
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>> it goes on to say i was out of town, the close down camp a day early and then overreacted, certain people in the police had tried to send up before, my car got booted right after the election. as for why? the mayor told the times, to send a message that they can do what they want, that i'd better watch out. >> i can assure you that oakland police officers have said no one up. >> the president of the oakland police officers association says the officers themselves were in jeopardy during the occupy sweep and the timing was not in any way political. >> i was disappointed that the mayor would say this about her police officers as they served her citizens in our community. >> as for the oakland police apartment itself, they referred us to the mayor's office for comment, a spokesperson for the mayor said today that the chief and the mayor have an excellent relationship and beyond that the mayor's comments today simply speak for themselves. back to you.
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>> i know that the reporter in this case does not mince words, an article he called oakland bourbon, dangerous, and pork, is he commenting about what the mayor has said? >> and this case the mayor accused the that it was taken out of context as opposed to being flat out wrong but that reporter did tell the chronicle that they stand by those words, they have it on tape and everything >> the new york times, they have a documented and they stand by it. >> thankyou. >> and other bay area headlines, one person died in a crash with two big rigs and a word this morning. it happen on highway 238 near the 880 connector. the collision trapped the car underneath one of the trucks. the driver died at the scene. no one else was hurt and it is not clear what caused that crash. eight family members and hospital after their s u v overturned in pittsburgh. it happened around 1:00 a.m. on highway 4 just north of railroad
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ave. is not clear yet what caused that crash. injuries are not considered serious. and in the south bay's three firefighters went to the hospital after battling a blaze at this car repair shop in campbell. they were treated and released. no word on how the fire started. >> an overnight fire tore through a sacramento warehouse and a nearby party store, shooting flames 100 ft. into the air. it broke out in the downtown area, cbs reporter checkey bedford tells us the owner of the warehouse said that he saw it coming. >> it is all devastating. >> party, sears was the place to go for celebration needs but today the air has been let out of the balloon after a fire alarm blaze ripped through the building. >> it is like a bomb went off, there's nothing left. >> the 20 year-old business a casualty of proximity, catching fire after an adjacent warehouse burst into flames around 1:30 a.m..
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>> they stored insulation, another one was a type of cat toy. >> they have been concerned about a warehouse next door for years. >> they had quite a bit of extra stuff, just a lot of things left in there. >> some members believe that there may have been cars with fuel inside that spurred the mass of flames. sacramento city code enforcement said they have had a number of runs with a warehouse since 2006 including being called up because of debris on the property sighting occupants twice for doing work without permits, unauthorized building equipment, and a burned up car on the property. now this business is conducting business at the school across the street. although there building up in flames, they want to make sure that all their profits do not wash away. >> we never prepare for this. >> debris litters the parking lot and firefighters just put down their hoses after pouring water on the blaze for nearly 13 hours.
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the fire alarm fire first ripped through this warehouse and then spread to the adjacent party business. both were destroyed. today we're learning that the warehouses have a number of runs, half a dozen, with code enforcement since 2006 and neighbors say that it was packed with junk, possibly even cars, which could have fed the flames. fire crews will remain on site for the remainder of the day and we're told that fire investigators may be here for up to a week as they try to figure out exactly what may have ignited the flames. >> drivers flocked there to save money, why is the end of the road for a discount gas program? >> the life of a young bay area athlete ended in violence. how this might be a case of mistaken identity? >> p,,
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>> safeway said goodbye to discount gas and it comes at a bad time with gas prices of in the past week. here is why safeway's stopping this promotion. >> they're canceling their 3¢ per gallon discount and they're announcing a with fliers at the store. they say they're doing this because they want to improve the discount program but some lawyers for independently owned gas station say that the timing is interesting giving that safeway is being sued for predatory pricing. in may a judge in alameda county issued a preliminary injunction against safeway sign that they cannot undercut small businesses and sell gasoline below cost. safeway canceled a so-called club car fuel promotion, it gave an automatic discounts 3¢ per
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gallon to all cardholders regardless or not of whether they bought groceries there. they said had nothing to do with the judge's ruling. lawyers say it is a victory for the little guy and for the consumer. >> it is the story of a small opera north that is struggling to stay active business wise, and i think that speaks well for the judicial system that gives a remedy and all so the commitment that some clients have to take on big corporate entities. >> there are other promotions that not affected like the power plant program where the more groceries to buy a bigger discount you get in gasoline. both parties are expected to be in court in january and a safeway loses they could pay up to $1 million in this local case alone. >> the 12th homicide victim of the year in richmond is a high- school athlete who had bright
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dreams for the future. he was shot and killed on west mcdonnell avenue and around 9:30 p.m.. ann noterangelo shows us how his teammates are mourning the loss of their friend. >> of the kennedy high-school football team is stunned by this death, as you can imagine. at the richmond police department they're still trying to figure out why someone want to kill this high-school junior. >> it is the worst day of our lives. >> the door to her home barely closed as the front room filled with kennedy high-school football players, morning there 16 year-old teammates violent death. >> very strong and intelligent. >> it was supposed to be the first day of their practicing but instead answer questions about the violence treats. >> you get used to it. >> but you never get used to this, even though two years ago 11 west contra costa county
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unified school district students were injured. >> it impacts the ability to focus on learning if ever one has to come to school constantly in fear, constantly on edge. >> and disbelief for the family that cannot imagine how pay day plan cards with grandparents ended with ulysses being shot across the street from where he lived. >> when i heard it i cannot believe it because he did not deserve to go like that. he was a pretty good kid. >> he had two older sisters, and wanted to get a football scholarship and plan the nfl. last night he was standing with a friend at an apartment complex when police say that words were exchanged and and bullets flew. >> we are investigating whether this is gang-related. we do believe that the suspects to have gang ties, we're not sure about the victim, it does not appear so at this time. >> he was wearing a red and yellow sweater and someone might have mistaken that for gang
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colors. >> great kid, all that he did was smile. >> this code says that he tries to guide his players on and off the field. >> life is about decisions that make, being aware of your surroundings. trying to be the best person that you possibly can be, but that does not stop drug use from happening, he was a great kid. >> police have one man in his 20s in custody and they're still looking for a second suspect. >> thank you. >> home invasion-robbery targeting an indoor marijuana growers turned into a deadly shooting in oakland. that happened just before 5:00 this morning in the chinatown area. apparently the caretaker of an indoor marijuana growing operation shot and killed one of the would-be thieves, officers say that the three men barged into the duplex and shot and killed the caretakers dog, before the caretaker fired back. police are looking for those two other men. the shooting in east san jose sent two people to the hospital,
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police found a teenage boy and a man with gunshot wounds last night on south white road by white court. police think the shooting is gang-related but there are no suspects. >> police certainly hear a lot of creative excuses from people hoping to avoid speeding tickets. but a florida woman at exposed an unusual one. she says that she did not stop for marion county police because she was top less. police say that the 35 year-old ran a stop sign and crashed into a tree on the patrol car tried to pull her over. she told police that she was going to see her boyfriend, to surprise them. she was booked for fleeing and eluding law enforcement. that is some surprise. >> we are definitely going to be warming up in the bay area in the inland areas.
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good evening everyone. highs from the upper 50s and pacifica to low ninety's. it was 78 degrees in san jose which is slightly below normal, and 79 degrees in santa rosa. here is a look, a little bit of stress trying to build just outside of the golden gate bridge, other was the coast is pretty clear. livermore currently at 80 degrees and it is still 76 in san jose. looking out to mt. diablo there's not a cloud in the sky, currently 88 there with a western and that 12 m.p.h.. very warm conditions and tomorrow's start off with a hint of stratus early and then seasonal temperatures. one more day before we keep up in inland areas. overnight into the '50s with a thin area of low clouds and patchy fog. the futurecast clearly paints the clouds along the san mateo coast and there you have your morning commute but watch what happens, very interesting. it wipes away, very similar to today. we will have sunshine and '50s prominent at the cool spots at
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the coast. a pair of eights in morgan hill and 75 degrees as we head to allan rock. 90 in san ramon and livermore and also pleasanton low ninety's in brentwood. mid-80s in santa rosa we'll san fransisco tops off of 65 degrees. the extended forecast, back into the triple digits on thursday, friday, all the way through the weekend, and with that, dana and alan, we will talk about next time because you know the air quality will take a hit when the heat up like that. >> thanks. have y,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
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>> 6:00, an innovative way for neighbors to help their community.
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a high-tech way for backyard growers to make sure their produce does not go to waste. at dawn for shows us how a new smart-phone application can help the hungry. >> summer in california means great tasting fruit and the bay area is perfect for backyard fruit trees. but there's a problem. >> there is too much fruit for us to use so a lot of the ones that have end up falling in the ground and rotting away in. >> much as lemons but all kinds of fruit. this is a terrible waste considering a lot of people could use that food. but now a new smart-phone application might fix that. theresa and low older teenagers helps create the program. >> there are some resources that is connected in the community and this is about bringing people together who want something with people that have something to share. >> you sign on and post that you have extra fruit and then your location is displayed on a map.
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to find for you simply log on and look at the map of your area. once collected the items removed from the map. susan thinks that it could lead to food trading. >> you were just talking about how we would like to share vegetables, that we would have too much of, and get some eggs. so if i have 100 counts of fraud in my backyard that i can maybe only use a fourth of. then why not sure that? i would love to give that to the community. >> anyone can join in right now. well people primarily around the bay area " to take this technology nationwide. >> he's is suspected of carrying out the shooting rampage at a milwaukee temple. how the army veteran is tied to heavy metal music? >> it has never been easier for tens of thousands in the bay area to get a good job. >> it has been a tough,,,,,,,,,
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>> we are finding out more tonight about the man accused in a mass shooting at a temple in wisconsin. a civil rights group described
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the army veteran as a frustrated neo-nazi who used to play in heavy metal white power bands. susan mcginnis is here with how one member of the church tried to take down that gunman. >> investigators could be at a sikh temple in milwaukee for most of the week collecting evidence after an army veteran allegedly went on a shooting rampage. >> investigators are following up on all leads that we have, to give you a motive at this time would be premature. >> please identify the shooter as the 40 year-old wade michael page and said he was discharged from the army in 1998. investigators say he killed six people sunday at the temple in oak creek and wounded three others including an officer, before police shot and killed him. this is the son of the temple's president, his father died trying to stop the attacker. >> my father, by engaging the shooter, tremendous amount of hardship was saved because people could get to cover.
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>> federal investigators are looking into whether this was an act of domestic terrorism or a hate based crime. >> we're looking at ties to white supremacy groups. members of the sikh community say that they're scared. >> we go there to worship. and pray for peace for everyone. and when that is not safe, where can a person go? >> fbi agents said they had no indication of any threats against the temple before sunday's attack. >> that mass shooting is bringing up painful members for the sikh community in the sacramento area. last year in elk grove to elderly sikh men were gunned down while they were on a walk. their murders remain unsolved. one of the victim's sons believes that it was a hate crime because of the way his father looked. >> some people relate the
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appearance to osama bin laden because he wears a turban. >> we have nothing to do with 911 but still people think we're different. we're peace-loving people. >> police say they do not even have any leads in the elk grove murders. >> he spoke out after last month's movie shooting massacre and he is making his voice heard once again today. the new york city mayor michael bloomberg is renewing his support for gun control, calling out the presidential candidates for not taking a stand. >> the deafening silence is a fair way to phrase it. neither can it it has been willing to address the issue. 48,000 americans will be murdered in the next four years and so far we have not heard from either candidate a plan, a concrete plan, that makes sense, to get the problem solved. >> both president obama and mitt romney expressed remorse and sympathy following this reason shooting. >> campaign 2012, for the third month in a row the mitt romney
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campaign rake in more money than president obama. today the president's team announced the reelection effort raised $75 million last month. compare that to the $101 million that mitt romney raise in july. the second month in a row the mitt romney campaign collected more than $100 million. stocks ended the day higher on a quiet trading day on wall street. the dow closed up just about 22 points and the nasdaq also up 22 and the s&p added three. >> union janitors marched through downtown san fransisco again today. they're threatening to go on strike over the cost of their health care. they say that they cannot afford to pay what their employers demand. >> everything is going up. and our wages are not even half of the cost to live in san fransisco. >> the union agreed to keep their members working for now
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while negotiations continue. >> tens of thousands of illegal immigrants in the bay area will soon be able to apply for a work permit, but they need to be under 31 years old. joe vasquez tells us that some illegal immigrants here are still not sure about that policy. >> this 18 year-old has mixed feelings about it. the mother of a year-and-a-half old girl and a recent high- school graduate from oakland knows that signing up for the president's new executive order called " deferred action " will allow her to apply for it to your work permit and stan the united states without the threat of deportation. >> i'm probably going for it. but there is still a question. >> the question is whether she can trust the same federal government that she has been hiding from since her parents brought her here at the age of four. >> was the want to deport us, then have all our information about where we live. >> the president's order allows some who came here without citizenship, to stay. the have to be at least 16 years of age and at most 30. those with significant criminal
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records, be eligible. according to a study on the immigration policy center more than 46,000 people in the bay area will immediately benefit from the new policy end nearly 20,000 more were under 15 years old, too young now but could benefit in the future. that is almost 66,000 people and the bay area. of the million or so officials say are eligible nationwide. >> i am worried. i really want to figure out everything out before i start. >> she is leaning toward signing the paperwork and it will not be cheap. a temporary work permit cost $240. the government will except application starting august 15th, a few months before she starts college. >> southwest airlines giving out refunds after a computer glitch overcharge hundreds of customers. those customers bought tickets during a half-price promotion but instead they got build multiple times. some of them were charged as many as 20 times for one
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booking. the airline is making good on all over charges including bank charges, associated with that mistake. >> caltrans getting a grant from the feds. the $3.2 million from the department of transportation will be used to install an advanced signal system. is a safety measure to stop a train automatically when another train is at on the tracks. it is part of a much larger program to modernize caltrans and prepare for the eventual addition of high-speed rail. >> they're not competing but they are seeing their dreams come true, a special group of olympics spectators that knows all about struggle and sa,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
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>> >> 16 year-old zachary just arrived at the summer games in london.
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he knows about struggle and sacrifice. here's more on this young boy who is now watching his olympic wish come true. >> the 15 year-old zachary cannot believe his eyes. he and his family are in london at the olympics. >> i do not know anywhere better than this. >> the triple a lifetime for a boy that knew that he had his life cut short, at birth diagnosed with a rare blood disorder. >> when i'm sick, it magnify it almost. i'm sick much longer. >> his father says that the disease will remain a threat for the rest of his son's life. >> it is frightening, your world closes in around you. and that is the only thing that is important. so, getting your son better, there's nothing else you can think of as a parent. >> instead of the olympic park he is feeling better. at a meal at kensington palace helped. >> i had seven deserts.
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>> the make a wish foundation sent him to the games and more than 50 other children with life-threatening diseases. >> it gave me my best experience of my life. >> he will have to rely on blood transfusions because of his disorder. >> as a parent, your whole life turns around. my child is sick and could die without a transfusion. >> issac does not dwell on his troubles. he is focusing on the next olympics that he attends, where he hopes to compete. >> to see how these people train so hard and sacrifice so much, i'm going to try and be like them. >> in a way he already is. >> a chinese man challenging the guinness world record with playing cards and produce. he slices for its and vegetables by flicking cards that them. he can cut a cucumber in half. the cards cut so deep into an
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apple that it is hard to pull them out. that is kind of scary. his best performance so far was cut in a row of 12 cucumbers in 47 seconds. but he has a better goal, he wants to cut 18 cucumbers in 60 seconds to set the world record. >> first, the risky lending. then the celebration at nasa. now the first image is being beamed back from this trip to mars following the seven minutes of terror. >> i am in the cbs 5 weather center and the coast is clear at this hour but now something else is perfectly clear. the hot forecast. the days to spec triple digits, but first, we have sports. >> roberta, we have a showdown at the american league west. must be nice, cheering on team usa from the shallow end.
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>> >> >> >> we have breaking news for you
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right now. where these fires are burning. this is the chevron refinery in richmond. two separate fires. we do not have an exact time of when it started but it was just a few minutes ago. as you can see this is from, let me make sure, this is the camera on top of the cbs 5 studios? this is from our roof and san fransisco, looking across to the east bay. you can see how high those two, that is from berkeley hills, with a separate picture but you can see how much smoke is putting out into the air now. of course miles around you concede this. the winds are blowing about 10 mi. per hour. moseley out of the north but they're fluctuating. you can see the plume of smoke going straight up until it hits a certain height, the people, i guess in the area, they're calling and telling us they have heard multiple explosions. we have one of those neighbors on the air right now to talk to us? can you hear me?
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>> yes i can. >> this is alan, can you tell me, what did you hear and see before this happened? >> about 10 minutes ago i heard several large explosions. and, and then we heard a shelter drill, we hear them every wednesday. we're used to hearing the drill but this was real, it is not wednesday and it is obviously in the evening. and of course, we closed all our windows and immediately we looked out the window and saw a very large flam, and they're very high. a very high up. so, yes, that is what we're seeing. i have lived in richmond for 38 years and never have seen anything this large. >> never heard an explosion? >> no. >> he said the shelter in place, was that officially given out or did it sound like a drill that you normally have? >> the first wednesday of every month at 11:00 they test the
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sirens. and i heard the sirens call off. and there is were ongoing, for a long time, that was the clue that we needed to close our windows and doors. >> before you got house close- up, could you tell? could you smell anything in the air? >> no i cannot smell anything. but now i am here on top of the hill, and i am seeing this cloud, it is very dark and it is rising. the flames do not seem to be going down all. >> doesn't seem to find? it seems like it is confined to the refinery? >> yes. they just look from my vantage point, they looked very tall. very high. >> but you cannot tell exactly what is burning within the refinery itself? >> no. although it looks like, you know, it tends to be in the area where, where oil is processed, where the smokestacks usually are. sometimes you see a flickering
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flame if you look across, down to the refinery from the hill. occasional use sea a flickering flame and that seems to be a part of normal refinery operations but this is clearly out of the usual. >> the slippery part is the burn off that they usually tell us about. they do that. but this time you had no warning? >> nothing, just explosions and immediately afterwards sirens. >> chevron has its own fire department there at the refinery, but can you tell? are there other agencies respond to this? you hear a lot of silence? >> i am not able to tell. that i cannot see right now. >> ok. we want you to stay inside your home, and observed the shelter in place. >> thank you very much. >> stay safe, this fire is burning at the chevron refinery in richmond. it started around 6:35 p.m. from what she told us.
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>> we're going to go to roberta to check on weather conditions because it is very important especially for the people living to the west of chevron? >> what we're going to do is take a look at this picture more time, we're looking from the city of san francisco, in a northeastern direction across the bay waters. current air temperature 69 degrees in richmond with the wind fluctuating before the most part under 10 m.p.h.. bowing out of the north. so it is blowing out of richmond, downstream towards oakland and emeryville, and for the most part those northern winds continue under 10 mi. per hour. you can see we're picking up a little bit of wind over the bay waters at this particular time before the most part and the wind does fluctuate and rotate and shift around, it is blowing from the north to the west. that would bring this one more toward san fransisco, across the bay waters if we continue to see that occurring but this time lots of blue skies out there, the plan is going straight up and you can see it begins to go in a more southern direction. wind out of the north blowing
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towards the south. >> thank you very much. we're just getting word that rodeo fire has called for a shelter in place in the surrounding community around the chevron refinery in richmond. so, the woman that we spoke with, she said she heard explosions around 6:35 p.m.. there are many procedures in place calling neighbors with robo-calls, and so what has occurred now is that word is getting out of a shelter in place. so this is a fire of some type, we do not have information from chevron at this point as to what exactly is going on at that refinery in richmond. this started around 6:35 p.m. according to the caller that lives in richmond and has a residence for three decades. >> we have another person with us, and, are you on your boat now? >> yes or i am. i am actually just a few miles from the refinery.
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ironically enough i actually used to work on oil tankers and went in there all the time. i'm familiar with the area. there was an initial explosion, a large crash and then it was a pause and a secondary explosion. even if you listen to the video clip you can see that it is burning into different areas. and, the smoke is tremendous. a number of us are out here right now, fortunately we are not quite downwind but we're pretty close to it, if it started drifting away. a number of voters are talking about getting out of the marina. >> you said that you are familiar with the refinery. and, you can see to points of smoke? can you offer us any kind of information as to how this refinery is laid out? >> i would not want to speculate too much on exactly what is gone on. that would probably be inappropriate. but normally, these explosions
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occurred in what they call a fraction unit and would not be surprised if that is what just happened right now. >> what is a cracking unit? >> say that is used in the process of refining crude oil into gasoline. those are usually where things are most volatile. so, i do not want to speculate too much. but i can guarantee you that as black smoke is definitely not healthy to be breathing. >> so, i appreciate that you do not want to speculate but in the terms of refining crude oil into gasoline, there must be a significant system of shut off valves that could keep the different types of fuel to separate? >> yes. what has happened is that years ago before they had a lot of automation it would be a human error thing and one person was spinning out and another person may not be aware of it and that would set off a chain reaction. but now everything is automated.
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so, technically, everything should just go into automatic mode but as soon as it goes wrong it would signal an automatic shutdown. but depending on, this looks pretty severe. the video is just amazing. >> from our vantage point looking at this video, these fires are being fuel, they're not diminishing in any way. and the degree of smoke does not decrease. >> it has not white in color. a very dark petroleum based smoke, is that what you're seeing? >> that is what i am seeing. and you know, we need to be thankful that we do not have any tanker fires, there are large tankers there and of the tanks went off that would be very bad. >> again, we're not on to speculate on that. i know that chevron does have their own fire department. we have just been given word that there is an entire city in
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richmond in place for this are rounding homes in richmond. >> i am seeing more video right now, to the left, those three tanks, on the hill, if those were to ignite, that would be catastrophic. >> but it seems like the fire department is away from those tanks at this point? >> pep is one way or another. but anyhow, as far as i know, i know that they have great containment. if they cannot get it shut off, it will burn itself out and that could go on for awhile. >> did you work at the refinery there? >> i used to work for oil tankers. and i used to go up to southeast alaska and help bring the car go down the coast. so, i have been in several refineries in the bay area and we're all familiar with how this
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stuff works. >> do you live on your boat? >> i do, i have a 40 ft. sailboat. >> from what we're seeing, the camera is on top of the studio in san fransisco so we're looking to the refinery northeast of us. most of the smoke is going pretty much straight up but some of it is filtering out, are you starting to believe that? >> no, it has been going east. i am looking at it right now. and, to me, the plume is going up probably, i don't know, maybe a few thousand feet and then it is bending over and going east. heading towards pleasantville, out to that way. >> we have a different picture that gives us a good idea about that. >> the siren's shut off after the first five minutes. anyone that was thing attention, there are some times when the fireballs go out that you can
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actually feel the pressure wave. if you are really paying attention to it. everyone is scrambling to get into position. if they have another explosion. >> it seems to us, david, that of the two fires that are burning, one of them, we cannot see as much flame but there is much more black smoke from that. the other one, it seems like the flames are much larger but there is less smoke? >> i would say that probably the plume to the left is where the ignition problem lies. it is designed to burn off gas and stuff like that. but what it looks like is that the flares are going beyond its ability. it might have even blown up itself. that is designed to burn away. so, the fire on the right, i
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would assume that it looks ok. but i'm speculating. just by looking at what i am seeing in this video. there is fire on the left. >> hang on for a second, if you will with us, while we catch people up to date. if you're just tuning in. approximately 6:35 p.m., there was an explosion of some type at the chevron refinery in richmond. we have witnesses call and. there was a secondary explosion. there's a fire at the richmond refinery, there were sirens immediately, the city of richmond has called for a shelter in place for the entire city of richmond. no doubt firefighters from surrounding communities are on this as well. chevron has its own fire department. the rodeo fire department has called for morning some place. >> we're being told the court
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has closed the richmond station. as far as we know this is the only station that is closed. the richmond station. >> we are waiting to hear from someone from chevron as to specifically what this is. dave is a former worker on an oil tanker. and has had some degree of knowledge with refineries, and what we have spoken of in the past few moments is that one of these fires is much larger than the other. possibly that second fire is actually burning off gas which is something that the refinery does. they set these flares and they burn off gases within the system. we're really not sure as to the degree of fire from what we're seeing in both of these flames. but it would be nice if we could hear from a voice of authority out of chevron. >> are you still with us?
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>> it is looking like they're squelching the fire to the left. there probably thrown from wanted to get it down. they use from like they do on an aircraft carrier. or something like that. they tried to smother the flames. and they try to cool it down until the temperatures comedown. but what happens is that during the time they're putting the foam on the fire the need to be aware of a flash, where they put the foam on it and try to get it squelched down. and then everyone will hold their position for a while and wait to see what happens. it definitely looks like the fire has come down a little bit. so they're doing something over there. >> we're seeing a closer picture from chopper 25. i want to alert, there are shelters in place for the city shelters in place for the city of richmond.
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the bart station at richmond is closed as well so they're putting a ring around the city of richmond. this is the richmond chevron refinery. there were explosions heard and large plume of smoke and be seen for miles. we're actually seeing it from our camera in san francisco on some of the shots >> this is chopper five witches in the air now and the smaller fire is what appears to be a burn off stack and the main fire is to the left or of a thick black smoke is but now we're not seeing flames, well, you can still see that the fire is actually burning and this is where apparently the initial explosion was. he heard a crack and then another explosion followed >> the plume of smoke has not
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diminished and now that we have been watching it for awhile, it is actually increasing in terms of the size of the smoke plume and the color. the color is starting to change from a totally black to now some white smoke coming out of that. >> on the phone with us is but burleson. could you actually helped build the refinery >> la was the superintendent for a specialty contractor for about 10 years. the previous person is a ground flare that is doing exactly what it is supposed to but the one on the left is a cracking unit where they make gasoline and sends it to other parts of the plan but that is a very serious unit to have an explosion in. ifhe

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